CHEAP  COAL; 

OR  THE 

BOSTON  AND  NORTHWESTERN,  MASSACHUSETTS  CENTRAL, 
AND  BOSTON  AND  POUGHKEEPSIE  RAILROADS: 


THEIR  RELATIONS  TO 


MASSACHUSETTS,  THE  COAL  FIELDS  OF  PENNSYLVANIA, 

AND 

THE  COMMERCE  OF  BOSTON. 


By  H.  F.  KEITH,  Civil  Engineer. 


BOSTON: 

FRANKLIN  PRESS:  RAND,  AVERY,  & COMPANY. 
1877. 


K 


( 


KAG^c. 


CHEAP  COAL. 


A new  railroad  enterprise  at  the  present  time,  to 
entitle  it  to  public  consideration,  should  possess  con- 
siderable merit,  and  be  able  to  supply  some  commodity 
to  the  people  at  less  cost  than  they  now  obtain  it,  or 
shorten  the  distance  between  prominent  points. 

Before  considering  at  this  time  a new  line,  it  may  be 
well  to  give  some  of  the  qualifications  requisite  for  a 
successful  line,  and  the  reasons  of  the  failure  of  so 
many,  whereby  almost  every  railroad  enterprise  has 
been  brought  into  disrepute,  so  that  most  capitalists  at 
the  present  time  condemn  all  indiscriminately. 

SOME  REASONS  OF  SUCCESS  AND  FAILURE. 

1.  Local  population  and  manufactures . A railroad, 

I as  a rule,  which  has  a large  local  population  along 
its  line  engaged  in  manufacturing  or  mining,  is 
successful ; but  there  are  exceptions,  and  there  is 
generally  a good  reason  for  it.  If  most  of  the  populous 
towns  along  its  line  have  other  and  better  railroad 
accommodations  which  compete  with  it,  and  the  line 
runs  contrary  to  the  direction  of  the  bulk  of  the  traffic, 
it  will  most  likely  be  a failure  financially. 


4 


2.  Cost.  A railroad,  like  a mill,  ought  not  to  be  ex- 
pected to  pay  dividends  on  an  inflated  cost ; but  it  is 
often  expected  that  it  can. 

3.  Poor  management  is  no  better  for  a railroad  than 
in  any  other  business,  although,  as  a general  thing,  it 
will  survive  this  longer  than  a poorly  managed  mercan- 
tile or  manufacturing  business. 

4.  A railroad  with  a capital  corresponding  to  its 
business,  which  runs  in  the  direction  of  the  business 
which  it  is  to  serve,  which  is  well  managed,  and  so 
located  as  to  be  able  to  compete  with  others  on  equal 
terms  as  to  distance  and  grades,  will  always  be  success- 
ful, and  survive  financial  panics  that  a mercantile  and 
manufacturing  business  cannot. 


MASSACHUSETTS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD. 

This  railroad  was  commenced  in  December,  1871 ; 
and  at  the  suspension  of  the  work,  at  the  time  of  the 
panic  in  1873,  there  had  been  expended  in  grading, 
masonry,  and  the  settlement  of  land  damages,  about 
$2,790,000.  It  is  more  than  two-thirds  completed 
from  its  eastern  terminus  at  the  Waltham  line,  12 
miles  from  the  Lowell  Depot  in  Boston,  through  the 
towns  of  Weston,  Wayland,  Sudbury,  Hudson,  Berlin, 
Boylston,  West  Boylston,  Holden,  Rutland,  Oakham, 
Barre,  Hardwich,  Enfield,  Belchertown,  Amherst,  and 
Hadley,  to  Northampton,  93  miles  from  Waltham,  and 
105.2  from  Boston ; intersecting  and  easily  connecting 
with  the  following  railroads:  viz.,  the  Framingham  and 
Lowell  at  South  Sudbury;  branches  of  the  Fitchburg  at 
Hudson,  the  Boston,  Clinton,  and  Fitchburg,  at  West 


Wf  UBHAg 


^ BOSTON  ai 
MASSAC!] 

BOSTON  and  PC 
AND  Tfl 

From  the  office  of 

II.F.  WALLING,  H 

102  Chauncey  St. 

H08TON 


MAP 

OP  THE 

D NORTHWESTERN, 
USETTS  CENTRAL 

AND 

[JGHKEEPSIE  RAILROADS 

am  CONNECTIONS. 


F.KEITH.C.E. 

MAY,  1877. 


5 


s c 


making  in  connection  with  this  a shorter  line  to 
'g  than  the  Fitchburg  Railroad  ; at  West  Boyls- 
the  Worcester  and  Nashua,  making  a line  from 
to  the  north  side  of  Boston,  but  little  longer 
"'^oston  and  Albany  to  the  south  side  ; at 
1 the  Boston,  Barre,  and  Gardner,  making 
1 from  Boston  to  Gardner  shorter  than  by 
’g  and  Vermont  and  Massachusetts,  and  but 
nger  to  Winchendon  than  the  line  through 
and  through  Worcester  to  Providence,  but 
er  from  the  Southwest  and  Poughkeepsie 
xrtford,  Providence,  and  Fishkill,  and  shorter 
e Hoosac  Tunnel  to  the  West  and  Northwest 
;s  than  the  Boston  and  Albany.  At  Hardwick 
er  the  Ware  River  Railroad;  at  Enfield  it 
connects  with  the  Springfield,  Athol,  and 
era,  giving  a line  to  Ludlow,  Indian  Orchard, 
nd  Springfield,  but  little  longer  than  the 
. Albany  ; at  Belcher  town,  with  the  pro- 
:on  and  Poughkeepsie  division ; at  Amherst, 
New  London  and  Northern,  and  a proposed 
d miles  long  to  connect  with  the  Troy  and 
.eld  at  Bardwell’s  Ferry,  which  it  reaches  by 
uiles  less  distance  from  Boston  than  via  the 
rg  and  Vermont  and  Massachusetts;  and  at 
^ mpton,  with  the  Connecticut  River  and  New 
kj££*n  and  Northampton,  and  its  branch  to  Williams- 

bese  connecting  lines  give  distribution  to  almost 
/ ections  of  Eastern  New  England.  The  line  from 
— — 'ston  to  Northampton  will  cost  completed,  without 
< ^ts  and  equipment,  $4,500,000.  It  will  cost,  to 


6 


reach  the  Middlesex  Branch  of  the  Lowell  Railroad  in 
Somerville,  $500,000  in  addition;  and,  for  a complete 
independent  entrance  into  Boston  on  South  Boston 
flats,  over  the  Boston  and  Northwestern,  $1,500,000 
more,  — a total  of  $6,500,000,  which  sum  would  allow 
for  about  30  miles  of  double  track  near  Boston. 

BOSTON  AND  POUGHKEEPSIE  RAILROAD. 

This  line  will  connect  at  its  eastern  end  with  the 
Massachusetts  Central  at  Belchertown,  and  thence  ex- 
tend westerly  through  the  towns  of  Granby  and  South 
Hadley  and  the  city  of  Holyoke  to  Westfield,  111 
miles  from  Boston  by  this  line  and  the  Massachusetts 
Central,  and  108.3  by  the  Boston  and  Albany;  or  over 
the  Springfield,  Athol,  and  Northeastern  from  Enfield, 
through  Indian  Orchard,  Springfield,  or  Chicopee  and 
West  Springfield,  to  Westfield.  From  Westfield  the 
line  continues  through  the  towns  of  Southwick,  Gran- 
ville, and  Tolland,  in  Hampden  County,  rising  west  to 
the  summit  in  Tolland,  1,400  feet  above  the  sea,  by  a 
maximum  ascending  grade  west  of  74  feet  per  mile 
for  six  miles;  thence  crossing  the  Farmington  valley 
about  one  mile  south  of  Cold  Spring,  by  a high  bridge, 
and  through  the  north  part  of  the  town  of  Sandisfield 
and  centre  of  Monterey,  by  a maximum  descending 
grade  of  66  feet  per  mile  for  five  miles,  to  Great  Bar- 
rington, 151  miles  from  Boston,  where  connection  is 
had  with  the  Housatonic  Railroad,  which  will  give  a 
large  business  from  the  southern  section  of  Berkshire 
County,  the  most  beautiful  and  interesting  section  of 
Massachusetts.  The  towns  along  the  line  between 


7 


Westfield  and  Great  Barrington  having,  before  the 
construction  of  the  Boston  and  Albany  Railroad,  ten 
per  cent  more  population  per  square  mile  than  the 
towns  between  Westfield  and  Pittsfield,  shows  conclu- 
sively the  natural  superiority  of  this  section.  They 
are  from  12  to  18  miles  from  the  nearest  point  on  the 
Boston  and  Albany,  Housatonic,  or  Connecticut  West- 
ern, at  Winsted ; and  their  business,  which  now  mostly 
goes  to  Winsted,  might  be  secured  to  Massachusetts  by 
this  line.  From  Great  Barrington  the  line  passes 
southerly  and  westerly  through  the  town  of  Egremont, 
crossing  the  New  York  State  line  north  of  the  town  of 
Mount  Washington,  a summer  resort  unequalled  by 
any  other  in  New  England,  for  its  many  attractions, 
pure  air,  and  accessibility ; thence  westerly  and  south- 
erly about  six  miles  to  a connection  with  the  Harlem 
Railroad  at  Copake  (and  by  a branch  west  from  State 
line  at  Hillsdale,  giving  lines  to  Hudson  and  Albany  by 
the  construction  of  a short  section  of  about  ten  miles). 
At  Copake,  connection  is  had  with  New  York  City  over 
the  Harlem  Railroad  ; thence  crossing  said  road  it  next 
intersects  with  the  Rhinebeck  and  Connecticut  for  Ron- 
dout  and  Kingston,  the  terminus  of  the  Delaware  and 
Hudson  Canal  and  Wallkill  Valley  branch  of  the  Erie, 
and  the  Ulster  and  Delaware  Railroads;  and  at  Ancram, 
about  14  miles  from  the  State  line,  with  the  Pough- 
keepsie, Hartford,  and  Boston  Railroad,  30  miles  to 
Poughkeepsie,  203  miles  from  Boston ; and  at  Pine 
Plains,  five  miles  southward  from  Ancram,  with  the 
Newburgh  and  Connecticut,  leading  to  Fishkill,  218 
miles  from  Boston  by  this  line,  and  227  by  the  New 
York  and  New  England. 


8 


POUGHKEEPSIE  BRIDGE  AND  'THE  COAL  TRADE. 

The  distance  and  grades  from  the  anthracite  coal 
fields  are  about  the  same  to  Poughkeepsie,  as  to  tide 
water  at  Jersey  City : therefore  the  cost  of  transporta- 
tion from  the  mines  to  Jersey  City  and  Poughkeepsie 
may  be  assumed  as  the  same.  At  Poughkeepsie  on 
the  completion  of  the  bridge  the  coal  will  start  in  cars 
for  the  interior  of  New  England.  At  Jersey  City 
it  has  to  be  unloaded  into  elevators,  or  discharged  into 
boats  if  ready  ; thence  transported  by  water  to  the 
seaports  of  New  England,  unloaded  into  elevators, 
and  again  into  cars  as  wanted.  Assuming  the  waste 
and  cost  of  reloadings  and  interest  and  repairs  on 
wharves  and  elevators  to  amount  to  fifty  cents  per 
ton,  and  adding  the  water  freights,  we  have  the  cost 
of  water  transportation  and  delivery  on  cars  at  the 
seaports  of  New  England.  New  Haven,  Providence, 
and  Boston  are  the  most  important  of  these  ports  ; and 
assuming  that  75  cents,  $1,  and  $1.25,  which  is  less 
than  the  ruling  rates  of  water  transportation  this  year, 
shall  be  the  average  water  freights,  adding  the  50  cents 
per  ton  for  reloadings,  &c.,  to  each,  we  have  the  excess 
in  cost  on  cars  at  these  New  England  seaports  above 
that  at  Poughkeepsie,  which  is  as  follows’:  New  Haven, 
$1.25;  Providence,  $1.50;  Boston,  $1.75.  If  we  now 
add  to  these  prices  $1  per  ton,  the  least  for  which 
railroads  can  afford  cars  and  transportation  for  dis- 
tances of  sixty  miles  or  less,  and  allow  1J  cents  per 
ton  per  mile  from  Poughkeepsie  Bridge,  we  have  the 
result  shown  in  the  following  table  : — 


9 


Miles  Rail. 

Cost  Water 
and  Rail. 

Cost  all 
Rail. 

Differ,  in 
favor  of  all 
Rail  p’r  ton. 

New  Haven  to  Westfield  .... 

61 

$2.25 

Poughkeepsie  to  Westfield  . . . 

92 

$1.38 

$.87 

Providence  to  Worcester  .... 

44 

2.50 

. 

Poughkeepsie  to  Worcester  . . . 

160 

2.40 

.10 

Boston  to  South  Framingham  . . 

21 

2.75 

Poughkeepsie  to  So.  Framingham, 

183 

2.75 

Boston  to  Lowell 

26 

2.75 

Poughkeepsie  to  Lowell  .... 

198 

2.97 

+ .22 

At  H cents  per  ton  per  mile,  it  will  be  found  that 
the  points  named  above  are  about  on  the  line  of  even 
competition,  with  the  advantage  in  favor  of  the  all-rail- 
route,  which  for  the  long  haul  of  150  miles  and  over 
could  be  afforded  at  less  than  1J  cents  per  ton  per 
mile,  probably  one  cent.  This  price  would  compete 
with  water  to  points  within  ten  miles  of  the  seaports  in 
Massachusetts.  These  investigations  followed  out,  it 
will  be  found  that  a line  drawn  from  Poughkeepsie  to 
Danbury,  Conn.,  thence  northeast  to  Windsor  Locks, 
thence  to  the  northeast  corner  of  Connecticut,  and 
from  there  to  Newburyport,  Mass.,  will  be  about  the 
southern  boundary  of  profitable  competition  for  coal 
across  Poughkeepsie  Bridge  with  water  rates ; and  a 
line  drawn  from  Poughkeepsie  to  North  Adams,  and 
extended  to  Canada,  will  represent  the  northwestern 
limit  of  competition  with  lines  north  of  Albany  owned 
and  operated  by  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Canal  Co. 
To  make  the  Poughkeepsie  Bridge  of  any  use  to  Massachu- 
setts in  the  cheapening  of  the  cost  of  coal  or  other  freights 
from  the  Erie  and  Pennsylvania  or  other  railroads , it  will  he 
found,  on  applying  the  preceding  principles  of  comparative 


10 


cost  of  water  and  rail  transportation , that  the  construction  of 
the  proposed  Boston  and  Poughkeepsie  Railroad , from  a con- 
nection with  the  Poughkeepsie , Hartford , and  Boston  Railroad , 
to  the  Connecticut  Valley  in  Massachusetts,  is  an  essential  part 
The  route  selected,  160  miles,  through  Massachusetts  is 
the  shortest  possible,  being  but  203  miles  from  Boston 
to  Poughkeepsie,  while  the  New  York  and  New  Eng- 
land and  Connecticut  Western,  or  the  proposed  line  via 
Waterbury,  are  both  from  226  to  227  miles  between 
these  points ; and  there  is  abundant  testimony  against 
the  feasibility  of  any  shorter  route  between  those  lines  ; 
and  my  own  investigations  have  led  to  the  game  con- 
clusion. 

The  Connecticut  Western,  and  New  York  and  New 
England,  do  not  reach  any  part  of  Massachusetts  where 
they  can  compete  with  water  transportation  for  coal,  or 
western  freights.  The  section  of  Massachusetts,  Ver- 
mont, and  New  Hampshire,  which  the  Boston  and 
Poughkeepsie  and  Massachusetts  Central  can  supply 
with  coal  at  an  average  of  fifty  cents  per  ton  less  than 
any  other  line,  consume  1,500,000  tons  per  annum. 
This  will  require  nearly  fifty  trains  every  working  day 
in  the  year  to  transport.  The  line  will  cost  from  An- 
cram  to  the  Connecticut  Valley,  with  equipment,  about 
$3,000,000.  The  average  haul  will  be  about  seventy 
miles,  for  which  it  would  be  safe  to  say  it  would  receive 
one  dollar  per  ton.  This  would  amount  to  $750,000 
for  half  the  business ; thirty  per  cent  of  this  would  be 
net  profit,  or  $225,000,  or  over  seven  per  cent  on  its 
cost  for  one-half  the  coal  traffic  alone,  and  at  an  average 
saving  to  the  consumer  of  fifty  cents  per  ton. 


11 


GENERAL  FREIGHT  AND  PASSENGER  TRAFFIC. 

The  line  as  a through  passenger  and  general  freight 
route  to  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  Washington,  and  the 
South  and  Southwest,  is  destined  to  be  unrivalled,  as  the 
distance  to  all  points  in  Pennsylvania  and  to  the  South 
from  Northern  and  Eastern  Massachusetts,  is  but  little 
farther  than  through  New  York  City  in  miles,  and  in 
time  less,  and  no  transfers  on  completion  of  the  Pough- 
keepsie Bridge.  As  a line  to  the  interior  of  Massachu- 
setts, Boston,  and  the  towns  and  cities  northeast  of 
Boston,  for  the  Pennsylvania,  Baltimore  and  Ohio  and 
Erie  Railroads,  it  is  unrivalled,  being  twelve  per  cent 
the  shortest  all-rail  line  south  of  Albany  to  all  points 
in  Massachusetts  and  eastern  New  England. 

By  the  following  table  of  comparative  distances  and 
accompanying  map,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  Massachu- 
setts Central  and  Boston  and  Poughkeepsie  Railroads 
not  only  make  the  shortest  line  from  Boston  to  all 
points  on  the  Hudson  River  from  Albany  to  Fishkill 
with  easy  grades,  but  has  the  important  advantage  of 
using  its  entire  line  — 160  miles  — through  Massachu- 
setts to  reach  all  points  south  of  Albany,  and  88 
miles  for  its  Hoosac  Tunnel  connection.  By  its  con- 
nections and  branches,  it  reaches  the  entire  population 
of  the  Connecticut  Valley  in  Massachusetts,  with  a 
population  of  over  100,000  within  ten  miles  of  the  city 
of  Holyoke,  which  of  itself  contains  a population  of 
over  17,000,  and  has  increased  more  rapidly  the  last  ten 
years  than  any  town  or  city  in  the  State.  These  con- 
nections and  branches  give  distribution  for  coal  to 
almost  every  part  of  Massachusetts,  and  bring  to 


Boston  the  trade  of  the  Connecticut  Valley  by  a 
shorter  line  than  either  the  Fitchburg  or  Boston  and 
Albany  Railroads.  The  local  and  tributary  population 
per  mile  for  the  first  one  hundred  miles  from  Boston 

is  888  on  the  Fitchlpprg,  and  1,052  on  this  line. 

aJ-J  3 1 t 

fn\ 

TABLE  OF  COMPARATIVE  DISTANCES  FROM  BOSTON. 


Mass.  Central,  & 
Boston  & Pough- 
keepsie and  con- 
nections. 

Other  Lines. 

Difference  more 
or  less  by 
Mass.  Cen- 
tral. 

Boston 

to  Fitchburg . . . 

49.5 

50. 

— 0.5 

it 

“ Worcester.  . . 

47 

44. 

+ 3. 

it 

“ Gardner  . . . 

62.7 

65. 

— 2.3 

it 

“ Winchendon  . . 

72.7 

68. 

+ 4.7 

“ 

“ Springfield  . . 

108.4 

98.3 

+ 10.1 

“ 

“ Chicopee  . . . 

105.4 

101.3 

+ 4.1 

“ Amherst  . . . 

97.7 

103. 

— 5.3 

it 

“ Northampton 

105.2 

115.3 

— 10.1 

it 

“ Bard  well’s  Ferry 

111. 

114. 

— 30 

it 

“ North  Adams  . 

141. 

144. 

— 3.0 

it 

“ Schenectady  . . 

198. 

218.6 

— 20.6 

tt 

“ Holyoke  . . . 

100.3 

106.3 

— 6. 

“ 

“ Westfield  . . . 

111. 

108.3 

+ 2.7 

tt 

“ Cold  Spring  . . 

135. 

“ 

“ Great  Barrington 

151. 

176. 

— 25. 

a 

“ Lee 

151.5 

162. 

— 10.5 

tt 

“ State  Line,  W.  Stockbr’ge 

161.4 

162. 

— 0.6 

if 

“ Hillsdale  . . . 

162  4 

195. 

— 32.6 

tt 

“ Hudson  . . . 

179.4 

194.3 

— 14.9 

tt 

“ Albany.  . . . 

204. 

201.6 

+ 2.4 

it 

“ Copake.  . . . 

165.2 

196. 

— 30.8 

tt 

“ Rhinebeck.  . . 

199. 

“ 

“ Poughkeepsie 

203. 

227. 

— 24. 

tt 

“ Fishkill  . . . 

218. 

227. 

— 9. 

“ 

“ Newburgh  . . 

219. 

228. 

— 9. 

tt 

“ Newark  . . . 

280. 

245. 

+ 35 

u 

“ Philadelphia  . . 

361. 

326. 

1 

+ 35. 

13 


COMPARATIVE  ESTIMATED  COST  OF  THE  BOSTON  AND 
NORTHWESTERN  MASSACHUSETTS  CENTRAL  AND  BOS- 
TON AND  POUGHKEEPSIE  RAILROADS  WITH  OTHER 
LINES  LEADING  WEST  FROM  BOSTON. 


Totals. 

Branches. 

Main 

Line. 

Cost. 

Remarks. 

Boston  to  Somerville  (B.  & Lowell) 

3 

. . . 

3 

. . . 

In  operation. 

Somerville  to  Weston 

9 

. . . 

9 

$500,000 

Surveyed  and  est. 

Weston  to  Northampton 

93 

— 17 

76 

4,500,000 

$2,790,000  expend. 

Belcliertown  to  N.T.  State  Line  . 

71 

... 

71 

2,650,000 

Surveyed  and  est. 

New  York  Line  to  Ancram  .... 

14 

. . . 

14 

350,000 

Examined. 

Ancram  to  Poughkeepsie 

43 

— 13 

30 

1,000,000 

In  operation. 

Total  cost  and  distance  .... 

233 

— 30 

203 

$9,000,000 

Less  30  miles  of  branches  at  $40,000  per  mile 1,200,000 

$7,800,000 

Add  for  independent  entrance  into  Boston  over  B.  & N.  W. . 1,500,000 

Add  cost  to  double  track  to  Poughkeepsie 3,200,000 

Total  cost  double  track,  steel  rails,  Boston  to  Poughkeepsie  $12,500,000 
Cost  of  Boston  and  Albany,  from  R.  R.  Commissioner’s  Re- 
port, exclusive  of  equipment,  stations,  branches,  &c.  . $18,700,000 

Balance  in  favor  of  proposed  Boston  & Poughkeepsie  line  $6,200,000 


The  average  cost  of  the  New  York  and  New  England 
completed  to  Poughkeepsie,  the  Fitchburg  to  the  Hud- 
son River,  and  the  Boston  and  Albany  all  double-tracked, 
without  equipment,  &c.,  is  about  $25,000,000,  or  double 
the  cost  of  this  line,  which  in  one  combines  all  the 
advantages  which  the  other  three  possess  as  through 
lines  to  all  prominent  points. 


14 


PROSPECTUS  OF  BOSTON  AND  POUGHKEEPSIE 

DIVISION. 

Having  described  the  line,  its  grades,  and  cost,  it 
seems  appropriate  to  give  some  of  the  reasons  for  its 
immediate  construction,  and  its  prospects  of  paying  if 
constructed. 

REASONS  FOR  ITS  IMMEDIATE  CONSTRUCTION. 

1.  It  is  the  shortest,  cheapest,  and  best  line  possible 
from  Boston  to  Albany,  Hudson,  Rondout,  Poughkeep- 
sie, and  Fishkill. 

2 It  shortens  the  distance  from  Boston  to  the  Pough- 
keepsie Bridge  now  under  construction,  24  miles,  or 
more  than  ten  per  cent,  over  any  other  line,  and  will 
consequently  cheapen  the  cost  of  transportation  that 
per  cent  on  all  freight  coming  over  said  bridge  to 
Massachusetts  and  the  other  New  England  States  east 
of  the  Connecticut  River. 

3.  It  can  save  in  the  one  item  of  coal  alone  one- third 
the  cost  of  the  railroad  annually,  in  addition  to  paying 
seven  per  cent  dividends  to  its  owners. 

4.  It  will  give  local  accommodation  to  a valuable 
and  interesting  section  of  the  State,  now  from  12  to 
18  miles  from  the  nearest  railroad  station,  and  ren- 
ders valuable  their  unoccupied  water-power,  forests  of 
timber,  quarries  of  marble  and  granite,  and  mines  of 
iron  and  other  ores,  and  shortens  the  distance  from 
all  towns  in  Southern  Berkshire  to  Boston  and  New 
York  from  20  to  25  miles. 


15 


5.  It  can  be  built  now,  with  the  low  price  of  labor 
and  materials,  at  a cost  that  will  give  it  a decided 
advantage  over  those  built  at  inflated  prices,  and  give 
employment  to  many  now  needing  it,  and  a useful 
investment  for  unemployed  capital,  with  a good  pros- 
pect of  profitable  dividends. 

BOSTON  AND  NORTHWESTERN  RAILROAD,  ITS  RELATION 
TO  THE  MASSACHUSETTS  CENTRAL  AND  BOSTON  AND 
POUGHKEEPSIE  RAILROADS,  AND  THE  COMMERCE  OF 
BOSTON. 

Having  examined  the  Massachusetts  Central,  and 
proposed  Boston  and  Poughkeepsie  Railroads,  and  their 
connections,  and  found  that  they  combine  all  the  ele- 
ments of  value  as  through  lines,  that  the  Fitchburg, 
Boston  and  Albany,  and  New  York  and  New  England, 
possess,  and  when  completed  will  have  only  one-sixth 
of  the  capital  of  those  roads,  and  that  the  Massachusetts 
Central  has  expended  very  little  in  the  construction  of 
its  line  east  of  the  western  terminus  of  the  proposed 
Boston  and  Northwestern  Railroad,  which  will  make  the 
cheapest  and  most  advantageous  connection  with  the 
unequalled  terminal  grounds  at  South  Boston  Flats, 
not  only  for  those  lines  and  their  connections,  but  for 
the  Boston  and  Albany,  Fitchburg,  Woonsocket  division 
of  the  New  York  and  New  England,  and  Boston  and 
Providence,  let  us  examine  the  merits  of  the  Boston 
and  Northwestern  itself,  and  its  relations  to  commerce 
and  manufactures. 

Its  construction  will  concentrate  the  heavy  freight 
business  of  these  railroads  and  their  connections  at 
South  Boston  Flats,  easily  accessible  to  the  wholesale 


16 


trade  of  the  city ; and  insure  the  construction  and  co- 
operation of  the  Massachusetts  Central,  and  proposed 
Boston  and  Poughkeepsie,  giving  it  with  their  connec- 
tions an  independent  connection  of  its  own  with  the 
Connecticut  Valley,  the  Hoosac  Tunnel,  Poughkeepsie 
Bridge,  and  Montreal,  shorter  than  either  of  the  other 
lines.  Such  being  the  intimate  connection  of  the 
Boston  and  Northwestern  with  these  lines  reaching  all 
important  points  with  the  shortest  and  best  line,  let  us 
consider  the  opportunities  and  advantages  which  it  will 
give  the  State  in  the  promotion  of  its  internal  indus- 
tries and  to  the  trade  and  commerce  of  Boston. 

First  let  us  examine  the  geographical  position  of 
the  State  with  regard  to  New  England,  Canada,  and 
the  British  Provinces  and  the  United  States.  It 
is  the  most  central,  prosperous,  and  densely  popu- 
lated of  any  of  the  New  England  States.  Its  water- 
power, variety  of  scenery,  and  social  and  educa- 
tional advantages,  are  unequalled  by  any  State  in  the 
Union.  It  contains  nearly  one-half  the  population  of 
New  England.  Boston,  its  capital  and  principal  seaport, 
has  a population  of  500,000  within  ten  miles  of  the 
State  House.  It  is  on  the  direct  line  between  the 
East  and  the  West,  being  directly  east  of  the  Mohawk 
Valley,  the  best  natural  route  to  the  Atlantic  seaboard 
from  the  Mississippi  Valley.  It  is  on  the  direct  highway 
between  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  and  the  British  Prov- 
inces, and  Southern  New  England  and  the  Southwest. 
Boston  and  Massachusetts  Bay  is  the  natural  centre  for 
the  fishing  interest  of  New  England  and  the  British 
Provinces,  having  a coast-line  of  its  own  of  nearly  300 
miles  exclusive  of  its  islands.  It  is  the  greatest  wool, 


17 


boot-and-shoe,  and  leather  market  in  the  country,  and 
contains  with  New  Hampshire  and  Rhode  Island  nearly 
two-thirds  the  cotton  spindles  in  the  United  States,  and 
is  intimately  connected  by  rail  and  water  with  New 
England,  Canada,  and  the  British  Provinces,  containing 
a total  population  of  about  8,000,000.  Admitting  that 
we  now  stand  at  the  head  in  all  these  industries,  and 
that  we  have  this  large  population  naturally  tributary, 
what  can  we  do  to  preserve  and  increase  this  advan- 
tageous position  ? 

Probably  all  will  admit  that  our  railway  connections 
with  Northern  New  England,  Canada,  and  the  Prov- 
inces, are  sufficiently  numerous ; and  also  with  Rhode 
Island,  Connecticut  and  New  York  City,  to  which  we 
have  no  less  than  four  lines.  All  will  also  admit  that  it 
is  utterly  useless  to  expect  lines  in  that  direction  to 
bring  trade  to  Boston  from  points  beyond  Northern 
Rhode  Island  and  Northeastern  Connecticut,  and  that 
every  railway  in  that  direction  or  through  Connecticut 
tends  to  build  up  New  York  more  than  Boston ; that 
even  the  Connecticut  Valley  in  our  own  State,  with  a 
population  of  over  175,000,  is  now  largely  tributary  to 
New  York  City,  and  Berkshire  County,  with  about 
75,000  additional,  wholly.  This  is  a matter  which  we 
can  and  should  remedy.  The  Massachusetts  Central 
and  its  connections  make  the  shortest  line  from  almost 
every  city  and  town  in  the  Connecticut  Valley, 
between  Springfield  and  Greenfield ; and,  with  quick 
and  cheap  trains  from  the  Connecticut  Valley  to 
Boston,  would  turn  this  trade  east  instead  of  south  as 
is  now  the  case  by  the  Boston  and  Albany,  Connecticut 
River,  New  York,  New  Haven,  and  Hartford,  and  New 


18 


Haven  and  Northampton  Railroads.  Do  this,  and  build 
the  Boston  and  Poughkeepsie  through  Southern  Berk- 
shire, requiring  the  construction  of  but  50  miles  in  our 
own  State  to  complete  the  only  link  necessary  to  make  a 
line  from  Boston  to  Poughkeepsie  24  miles  shorter  than 
the  New  York  and  New  England  through  Connecticut, 
and  you  control  the  trade  of  the  75,000  inhabitants  in 
Berkshire  County  who  desire  to  trade  in  the  capital 
of  their  own  State.  Having  considered  our  local  New 
England  railway  system,  and  finding  that  improved 
transportation  through  Connecticut  tends  to  carry  our 
trade  to  New  York  City,  a disadvantage  to  us ; that 
the  competition  which  we  will  have  from  Western 
Massachusetts  to  Boston  by  the  completion  of  the 
Massachusetts  Central  and  Boston  and  Poughkeepsie 
will  concentrate  the  bulk  of  the  trade  of  the  western 
portion  of  our  State  with  250,000  inhabitants  at 
Boston,  instead  of  New  York  as  at  present,  and  that  the 
trade  to  the  north  and  northeast  is  naturally  ours  now, 
and  needs  but  the  improvement  of  existing  lines  to 
increase  it,  — let  us  now  extend  our  investigations  to 
that  which  is  of  especial  interest  to  the  commerce  of 
Boston. 

Foreign  commerce,  to  be  successful,  is  as  dependent 
on  return  freight  as  plenty  to  export.  New  England 
being  the  centre  of  the  manufacturing  industry  of  the 
country,  contains  a dense  population,  who  are  conse- 
quently large  consumers  of  foreign  importations  both 
of  luxuries  and  the  raw  material  for  our  manufactures. 
Including  Canada  and  the  British  Provinces  we  have  a 
population  of  about  8,000,000,  directly  tributary  to 
Boston  by  the  railway  system  of  New  England.  The 


19 


trade  of  Canada  through  Montreal  has  been  seeking 
export  through  Boston  for  several  years,  but  finds  no 
adequate  terminal  and  shipping  facilities  with  which  to 
connect  the  railways  in  that  direction  with  our  ship- 
ping. The  policy  of  equal  through  rates  to  Europe 
from  the  West,  through  all  Atlantic  seaports,  now  so 
objectionable  to  us,  would  be  largely  overcome  if  we 
had  the  superior  terminal  grounds  at  South  Boston 
developed,  and  connected  with  the  railway  system  of 
the  State  as  proposed  by  the  Boston  and  Northwestern 
Railroad  Company.  The  admirable  system  which  it  is 
possible  to  secure  there  would  also  largely  tend  to  in- 
duce the  construction  of  a railway  from  Lake  Ontario 
to  a connection  with  the  Hoosac  Tunnel.  Business 
and  freight  will  go  where  it  can  be  handled  cheapest, 
especially  when  it  is  on  the  direct  line  of  its  destina- 
tion, and  can  secure  large  return  freights. 

With  the  Massachusetts  Central  and  Boston  and 
Poughkeepsie,  and  their  connections,  built  and  to  be 
built  by  the  local  interest,  can  Boston  with  more  than 
one-third  the  entire  capital  of  the  State  afford  to  with- 
hold the  sum  necessary  to  provide  the  way  into  the 
city  to  a point  so  convenient  to  its  wholesale  trade  as 
South  Boston  Flats  ? Give  these  lines  an  independent 
entrance  into  Boston,  and  you  bring  here  the  trade  of 
250,000  inhabitants  in  Western  Massachusetts  now 
almost  wholly  tributary  to  New  York.  Construct  the 
Boston  and  Northwestern  Railroad  with  elevator  and 
warehouse  accommodations,  and  you  at  once  secure 
the  winter  export  of  Montreal,  and  open  and  provide 
the  way  for  new  lines  of  great  value  to  the  West  and 
Southwest. 


20 


WILL  THESE  LINES  PAY? 

Absolute  proof  on  this  point  can  be  given  of  no  new 
enterprise  ; but,  if  we  admit  that  this  line  has  the  aver- 
age merits  of  the  other  railroads  of  Massachusetts,  we 
can  arrive  at  but  one  decision. 

1st,  The  single  track  mileage  of  all  descriptions  in 
this  State,  according  to  the  Railroad  Commissioners’ 
report  of  1875,  is  3,778  miles;  the  total  cost  without 
equipment  is  $157,999,803,  an  average  of  $41,821  per 
mile  of  single  track.  The  net  earnings  per  mile  of 
single  track  are  $2,553,  or  six  per  cent  on  a cost  of 
$42,500  per  mile.  The  total  single  track  mileage  of  the 
Boston  and  Northwestern,  Massachusetts  Central,  and 
Boston  and  Poughkeepsie,  will  be  250  miles  at  a total 
cost  of  $9,300,000,  an  average  of  $37,200  per  mile. 
The  average  equipment  per  mile  of  the  railways  of 
the  State  is  $4,932 : this  added  to  the  cost  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Central,  and  Boston  and  Poughkeepsie,  per 
mile  is  $42,132,  a cost  on  which  over  six  per  cent  is 
being  paid  on  every  mile  of  track  in  Massachusetts 
during  the  most  depressed  period  which  has  been  ex- 
perienced since  the  construction  of  railroads. 

In  comparing  this  cost  with  the  Boston,  Clinton,  and 
Fitchburg,  Eastern,  and  New  York  and  New  England, 
per  mile,  of  less  than  the  average  merit  as  local  or 
through  lines,  we  shall  find  that  high  cost  per  mile  is 
the  first  primary  cause  of  all  their  troubles,  as  well  as 
almost  all  the  Western  roads  which  with  far  less  local 
population  than  in  Massachusetts  have  cost  more  per 
mile. 

While  the  towns  and  cities  throughout  the  State 


21 


have  been  building  railways  in  all  directions  to  develop 
their  interests,  Boston  has  done  nothing  to  develop  her 
interests  for  forty  years.  Boston  capitalists,  while 
spending  a hundred  millions  in  Western  railroads  with 
great  subsidies,  have  found  they  can  only  earn  six  or 
seven  per  cent  on  a fair  cost ; their  predecessors,  who 
forty  years  ago  built  the  Boston  and  Worcester,  West- 
ern, and  Boston  and  Providence,  and  other  railroads 
leading  out  of  Boston,  are  getting  a better  return  for 
their  investment,  and  are  also  entitled  to  the  credit  of 
the  past  growth  of  the  city.  Forty  years  ago,  they, 
with  a far  smaller  capital,  raised  several  millions : can 
modern  Boston  raise  two  to-day  ? 

HERBERT  F.  KEITH, 

Civil  Engineer. 


